Buenos Aires Walking Tours

Free Walking Tours

Cultour was great. As a guided tour it was different from what we have today, the guide talks about most of the city's past and explains some monuments, explains why some aspects in the present are the way they are, we got to know a little bit of argentina's history, very far from those bus tours that only show how great the architecture of the city is, indeed a lot better!

André (Río de Janeiro, Brazil)

Enjoyed this walking tour very much. Allowed me to see the city and learn about it. Much better than being on a bus! Nicolas was excellent, and the whole thing was great. It was a really nice day. I saw parts of the city I would not have found with my guide book. Highly recommended!

Martha (New York, USA)

As far as I know, this is the only tour offered in la boca neighbourhood and it is definitely worth it. I've done several walking tours in my trip to south america and this guide was probably the best. He provided every information we wanted and really got the group to be involved by asking questions and performing brainstorming.

Ramat (Tel Aviv, Israel)

With such great tour guides it’s hard to go wrong! Friendly, open, highly knowledgeable and well versed, these guys know their stuff and have a great and interactive way of sharing it. You can't get Buenos Aires or its people until you understand their history and this tour has a special way of doing that. They make history come to life and the tour itself opens your eyes to a whole other side of the city in a way that's unique, entertaining, interesting and fun. I highly recommend it!!

Clio, (Toronto, Canada)

This was a fantastic tour, the best day I had in Buenos Aires. The guys really know their history and I learned an enormous amount in the space of a few hours. You really get an insight into what it must have been like living in Buenos Aires through all of the important events. I met some great people too and the guys were very interesting, informative and funny. I encourage anyone to do this tour, it really is a lot of fun. Keep up the good work guys!

Alex (London, UK)

Private Tours

About Cultour

Walking tour by Cultour is far from being a traditional one. Our free walking tours and private tours are not conventional at all: we are young independent workers, trained at several different institutions, such as the University of Buenos Aires, where we were taught to investigate beyond the classical history manuals. We don't use microphones because our tours are not a lecture, but a dialogue of equals.

What is more, we prefer to walk because being well up close is the best chance you will get to listen to what the streets have to say. Although we may not be the first choice in the menu, our clients come through word-of-mouth recommendations. We are an option that has yet to be discovered; after all, the history depends on who tells it.

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Free Walking Tour DOWNTOWN

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DESCRIPTION: Buenos Aires is a city with a vast history and a very active social and political life. This tour explains the most important facts of argentinean history, starting from Buenos Aires’ foundation in colonial times all the way up until the vibrant twentieth century. This tour focuses on Evita’s life and social work, Juan Domingo Peron’s government, the “Mothers of Plaza de Mayo” and their fight against dictatorship, as well as the protests that take place on the streets of the city every day. While visiting plazas, buildings, monuments and street art, as you take in the sights and sounds, you will learn about the idiosyncrasy, history and culture of Argentina and its most important city.

MAIN TOPICS: Buenos Aires foundation by the spanish - Colonial times - Revolution and independence movement - Juan Domingo Perón and “Evita”: Peronismo - Military dictatorship - “Mothers of Plaza the Mayo” - Economic and social crisis of 2001- Plaza de Mayo - Downtown (historical center) - Current political and social situation

Free Walking Tour RECOLETA

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DESCRIPTION: The north of the city is the richest area in Buenos Aires, because it was the place where our aristocracy decided to build their palaces at the beginnings of the 20th century. Along the tour we visit “Plaza San Martín”, named after the liberator of the country José de San Martín, and surrounded by incredible and luxurious palaces. Then we walk along the french style avenue “Alvear” until the Cemetery of Recoleta (where Evita’s grave is located). This tour tries to show the way of life of Buenos Aires upper class of those times, their dreams and the country that they left a side.

Free Walking Tour LA BOCA

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DESCRIPTION: We visit the most famous southern neighbourhood of Buenos Aires: La Boca. Founded by italian immigrants, it was the first natural port of the city. Also, tango and football were born in this area, surrounded of colourful "conventillos"; each of these topics refer us to different times and stories that can only be understood as you walk along their streets.

We have divided the tour in two different parts:

1st part

COST: FREE (we work on tip basis – AR$ 200 suggested)

ITINERARY: We take a public bus (you will need your SUBE card or to bring AR$14 pesos), 15 minutes journey until we get to the old port / “Riachuelo” (river) / walk along "Caminito" (the street with the colorful houses) / "Maradona, Evita and Carlos Gardel" statues / Graffitis and murals of La Boca/ “Bombonera” (Boca Juniors stadium) – walk around internal streets // Areas to cover: La Boca

DURATION: 11:00 am to 1:00 pm

2nd part

This part of the tour is optional, for those who really enjoyed the 1st part and want to continue the day discovering Buenos Aires with CULTOUR.

COST: AR$ 500.-

ITINERARY: We take another public bus to go to San Telmo,10 minutes journey / “Mansion Ezeiza” ("conventillo" – shared house where immigrants lived) / Defensa street / ¨Viejo Mercado de San Telmo¨ (old market) / “Casa Minima” (the house with the narrowest front)/ ¨Pasaje San Lorenzo¨ / "Che" Guevara`s mural / ¨Mafalda¨ statue (most famous caricature of the country) / Dique N° 2 Puerto Madero (the newest, most modern and fanciest neighbourhood of the city) / “Puente de la Mujer” (woman´s bridge).//Areas to cover: San Telmo, Puerto Madero

Free Walking Tour ECLECTIC

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DESCRIPTION: We visit some of the most emblematic buildings and constructions of the city. We walk through the traditional Avenida de Mayo, the oldest avenue in Latin America, with its majestic french style. We are also going to some of the most interesting places of Buenos Aires: the ancient Cafe Tortoni, the curious Palacio Barolo, the imposing Congreso Nacional (National Congress), while explaining the different historical processes the gave rise to them.

Private Tour TANGO

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This tour explains the origin, evolution and influence of tango in the Argentine popular culture. We set out to unravel its genesis, trying to track the idiosyncrasy prompted by the Rio de la Plata, which has distinguished tango from folk dances that come from other parts of the country.

By the end of the 19th century, a great wave of European immigration settled in the city, leading to the flourishing of tenement and boarding houses. This created a context of melancholy and poverty that shaped the essence of tango. A new life for the immigrants in the cosmopolitan city —far away from their countries—, a mix of cultures, languages and customs in the shared lodgings and an everyday life full of unmet necessities were the key elements that combined to bring this popular expression to life.

We will visit an old mansion—which belonged to a traditional family of the Argentine aristocracy—that, given the social and demographic changes Buenos Aires was going through at the time, was turned into a tenement house. There, we will talk about the upper class’ contempt for tango during its early years: tango did not represent the kind of principles the city elite wanted to copy, they would rather see themselves as a reflection of modern countries, such as France and Great Britain.

On this tour, we will also visit the house —now turned into a museum— of Carlos Gardel, the most important icon in the history of tango and its best voice. It is located in the neighbourhood of Abasto, where there is a subway station named in his honour. There will definitely be a time on this tour to observe local couples dancing tango in city squares and pedestrian walkways.

This tour will be given by a native of the city of Buenos Aires, so as to thoroughly explain the particular relationship between tango and the residents of the city.

Private Tour FOOTBALL

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On this tour, we will visit many sights that are related to football, to its most relevant clubs and to the most famous players.

Having a strong popular identity —though elitist in its beginnings—, football has been and still is one of the main activities in the city of Buenos Aires and the country. This is evidenced in its purest expression, its passionate supporters; as well as in relation to the most important political processes of the last hundred years.

We will go to La Boca, the traditional neighbourhood that gave birth to two of the most prominent clubs in the country: Boca Juniors and River Plate. We will enter the legendary Bombonera (Boca Juniors Stadium), an emblematic construction dating from 1940, and we will visit the museum that exhibits the history of the club and the statues of its most iconic players. Then, we will set off for another traditional neighbourhood, La Paternal. There, we will visit the Argentinos Juniors stadium, which was renamed in honour of the best player of all times, Diego Maradona, who made his professional debut in that club.

This tour will end in a traditional football pub, one of the many you will find in the street corners of the city of Buenos Aires.

Your guide is Argentinian and an authentic football fan: not only is he an expert on football history, he is also madly passionate about the best sport in the world.

Private Tour EVITA

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On this tour, we will visit emblematic sites of the life and work of Eva Peron, the most relevant popular icon in Argentine history. Far from Hollywood’s version of the workers’ leader, this tour looks into her biography and the life events that left a mark on her and, therefore, had an effect on the social and political aspects of her government, during the golden years of Peronismo. We will also refer to the subject of her death and what caused it, the theft of her corpse, and how she became a popular myth.

Then, we will visit the Evita Museum, located at an old hospice where her foundation gave shelter and comfort to children and the elderly. We will go to places and buildings in which Evita carried out her life’s work, such as the Ministry of Public Works (Ministerio de Obras Públicas) —showing two site specific sculptures, consisting in steel beams mounted on the building—, and the former seat of the Eva Peron Social Welfare Foundation (Fundación de Ayuda Social). We will also see the famous balcony from which she delivered her memorable speeches in front of huge crowds of “cabecitas negras” (a term used by Eva Peron to refer to the proletariat) who filled Plaza de Mayo. Later on, we will visit the tomb where her body has lain for many years, in the Recoleta Cemetery, which is located—paradoxically— in one of the most expensive neighbourhoods in town.

The tour will try to focus not only in personal aspects, but also in the political, social and cultural sphere, so as to get a more profound understanding of both her private and public life, as well as establish a contrast between the different views that Argentinians have about her.

All our guides were born, raised and educated in Argentina, so they bring to the table their own experience in relation to the figure of Eva Peron and their family’s as well. This will give you the chance to get to know the point of view of a local.

Private Tour DICTATORSHIP

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Private Tour ARCHITECTURE

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Buenos Aires is internationally renowned for being the most European city of Latin America. In fact, during the 20th century, Buenos Aires has been dubbed the “Paris” of the South, owing to the profound influence the french architecture had on its urban construction. However, the city has an architectonic diversity that has not been sufficiently explored nor explained, ranging from the french "Beaux Arts" style to the plain Rationalist movement. This is a chaotic city, with a chaotic architecture. Nothing seems to make sense, although this eclecticism brings about an attractive ensemble to sightsee and stroll along.

Getting lost around Buenos Aires is like wandering around the squares of a chessboard, its streets —of a hundred metres each— are laid out in a grid pattern, the way the Spaniards used to build their cities long ago. But all of a sudden, like an oasis in the middle of the desert, some diagonals and concentric streets show up out of nowhere; the traditional scheme breaks unexpectedly and it seems like we have been transported to another place.

Buenos Aires is like a jigsaw puzzle in which the pieces don’t seem to fit, though, in a disorderly manner and sometimes even randomly, they end up fitting.

On this tour, we will see some of the most characteristic constructions of the city and we will have the chance to spot a variety of styles, influences and even some of the most unique inventions of the world.

The purpose of this tour is to expose the Spanish origin of Buenos Aires, which is hard to trace nowadays, but is present in churches, cathedrals and monasteries that are still standing from the colonial times. Also, we will explain the historical motives of the radical change the city went through by the end of the 19th century, when the Argentinian upper class, obsessed with being a reflection of Europe, started building mansions following the guidelines of the “Beaux Arts” style.

Then, we will visit modern buildings, such as the Brutalist constructions of the 20th century or some other Rationalists examples, which will result in an incoherent heterogeneous mix, but certainly not less attractive or interesting.

Your local guide is not only resident of the city, but also an expert in Art, Architecture and History. His knowledge and experience are vital to the tour and will help you appreciate the essence of the city.

FAQs

Do I have to make a reservation or can I just show up?

Yes. Reservations are required for guaranteed spots on all tours. They help us determine the number of guides we need to ensure that our groups remain manageable and enjoyable, and they allow us to notify you of changes to the tour due to weather or anything that could disturb the tours.

Walk-up guests for our tours will be permitted if space is available. However, we strongly suggest contacting us before walking up to a tour.

How long are the walks?

All of our regular walking tours are divided into two different parts: the “FREE WALKING TOUR”, which lasts about an hour and a half or two hours, and an optional SECOND PART, for the ones who really enjoyed the 1st part and want to keep exploring the city with us. That lasts two and a half more hours.

Why do we offer a second part?

On the second part of the tour we spend more time visiting other places of the city, going further into details and topics mentioned on the first part.

It should be pointed out that before starting the second part of the tour, we take a short break on a local non-touristy place to try some typical Argentinean food, such as tasty empanadas or the traditional “choripan” (not included on the price of the tour).

How much does the regular walking tour cost?

Our Free Walking Tours (between one and a half and two hours-long) don’t have a fixed price. We appreciate whatever you feel is fair, you name the price. The optional second part has a cost of AR$ 250 (US$ 15 aprox.)

If you’re coming on the 2nd part you don’t need to leave any contribution for the first part.

How much does it cost to do a private tour?

The price of the Private Tours vary according to the length, the use of private vehicles or public transportation + walking, and whether meals are included or not, etc. Get in touch with us and let us know what type of tour you want.

You can choose from one of our most required Private Tours, or book a Tailor-made tour, based on your own interests.

Check the Private Tours link for more information.

Do the tours ever get cancelled for weather?

Our tours go out rain or shine. Dress appropriately for the conditions. If the weather is bad your guide will include as many indoor stops as possible. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended. However, Cultour may cancel or postpone the tour due to extreme weather. Please contact us or check our social media for updates.